HP plans one last production run for the TouchPad

Hewlett-Packard said Tuesday it plans one last production run of the TouchPad, which has become a hot seller following a price cut and the announcement the company was killing the tablet computer.

Citing disappointing sales, HP, the world's largest personal computer maker, announced on August 18 that it was ending production of the TouchPad, its rival to Apple's iPad, after just seven weeks on the market.

HP also said it was halting production of phones based on the webOS mobile operating system acquired from Palm last year for $1.2 billion.

The Palo Alto, California-based HP also announced that it was cutting the price of the most basic model of the TouchPad from $399 to just $99.

The tablet computer has been flying off the shelves ever since.

"Since we announced the price drop, the number of inquiries about the product and the speed at which it disappeared from inventory has been stunning," HP said in a blog post on Tuesday.

"Despite announcing an end to manufacturing webOS hardware, we have decided to produce one last run of TouchPads to meet unfulfilled demand," HP said.

"We don't know exactly when these units will be available or how many we'll get, and we can't promise we'll have enough for everyone," HP said. "We do know that it will be at least a few weeks before you can purchase."

HP also announced on August 18 that it was exploring a spinoff of its PC unit in a historic shift away from the consumer market.